Framemaker 9 Crashes in Windows 7 / 64 Bit Env. When I switch from Unstructred to Structured Files

Question

This is a fix.
I typically use Framemaker to edit structured DITA xml documents.  I recently got a Win 7/64 bit machine and decided this was a good time to upgrade to Framemaker 9. I installed Frame 9 directly onto this new machine.  It worked fine with my xml files.
Then I had to switch projects and work on some unstructured documents. In order to document the application these unstructured documents were for I had to turn off Windows Themes, as the  application I needed to document had  display problems with those on.  After I finished the unstructured documentation, I switched back to my DITA XML documents. But they would not open. I selected an XML file from the Open dialog and immediately FrameMaker 9 crashed. I tried turning Themes back on and chose the recommended Aero theme. No change. My XML files still crashed FrameMaker 9 as soon as I selected one to open. The error message came post-crash and did not come from FrameMaker: it said Windows was trying to find some information about the crash, but could not find any.
This problem may be specific to DITA or it may occur with other structured-unstructured switches. I don't know, I only work with DITA XML.
But I just found a workaround and would like to share it in case anyone else encounters this:
1.     Open an unstructured file.
2.     In the upper right corner of the screen you’ll see AUTHORING. Open the drop-down and choose DITA AUTHORING (or whatever type you use for structured documents).
3.     Open the Structure Tools menu and select Set Structured Application.
4.     In the dialog, select the structure application you want to use with the XML file you want to open, DITA-TOPIC-FM, for example.
5.     Now open a structured XML file. It will open now.
6.     Close the unstructured document without saving any changes to it.
7.     Save your structured document  then work with it.You only have to do this once. The next time you open an XML file, FrameMaker will open it correctly.  It persists even after you close Frame 9 and reopen it.
It suprised me that Framemaker 9 didn't automatically switch back to Dita/structured mode upon opening an XML file, but I was glad there was an easy way to fix this.

Answer 1

pvanbavel wrote:
crashes no MATTER what I try--   administrator mode FAIL.   upgrade to version 2 FAIL.  uniinstall followed by complete registry cleanup then reinstall FAIL.  
Contacted customer service-- their ownly solution is to pull out the memory card and use a card reader.  Not acceptable because that does NOT create folders by day-- an extremely usefull tool if you take a lot of pictures. nor does it prevent multiple loads of files.     customer service intidicated the software was written by an unknown australian company-- no information on who they are or how to contact them.   
It used to work just fine and still works on my laptop also using windows 7 64 bit. 
A suspicious item is that it always asks for permission to modify or install software, long after it was installed; shows the standard windows dialog when loading new software.   suggesting that an attempt is made to modify a protected or forbidden file region.  
I would like to see a serious attempt by canon to solve this problem, its gone on too long and many others have it. 
The program runs on your laptop and on countless other 64-bit Windows 7 computers - including one located less than three feet from me as I type this. It doesn't run on your other computer, and the error messages suggest a file permission problem. And it's Canon's fault. That may be true; Canon's software is certainly not bug-free. But if I were a betting man, I'd bet that your problem is in your computer.
Bob
Boston, Massachusetts USA